New mothers’ milk bank drop-off depot opens in De Pere

DE PERE – Mothers’ Milk Bank of the Western Great Lakes (Milk Bank WGL) and the De Pere Health Department have partnered to bring a new human milk drop-off depot to De Pere.

This collaboration has increased access for approved donors to donate life-saving nutrition to pediatric patients.

The process of donating milk typically takes around two weeks.
From the collection, the milk is transported to the processing facility in Elk Grove Village, Ill.

There, the milk is pasteurized to eliminate viruses and bacteria.

Most of the milk is delivered to St. Elizabeth Campus, Aurora Baycare Medical Center, Fox Valley Hospital-Children’s Wisconsin, but can also be distributed to other hospitals in Wisconsin or Illinois.
“Having a milk depot in De Pere is an amazing development. With this new location, milk donors will be able to drop off their milk conveniently and quickly. We are so happy to partner with the De Pere Health Department to promote the health and wellbeing of the youngest and most vulnerable members of the community. The health department is a champion for promoting health and wellbeing for their community, and these depots are a perfect addition to doing just that,” said Clinical Manager Amber Barnes
The De Pere Health Department is “excited to collaborate with Mother’s Milk Bank of the Western Great Lakes to be a convenient, local access point for donors. We feel it’s important to raise awareness in our community about resources available for those looking to donate milk or those in need of accessing donor milk,” but it is only a drop-off location and cannot disseminate milk, De Pere Health Department Deputy Health Officer Sara Lornson stated.

The cost of donor milk can sometimes be covered by insurance, but for additional information, the Milk Bank WGL works directly with each family to determine the costs.

The De Pere Health Department will be adding this milk drop-off to their site in addition to the other resources they offer here.

The department also has on-site nurses who administer vaccines and immunizations for children who do not have insurance or are on BadgerCare or Medicaid.

The department also offers lead screenings, education resources and home visits to find the source and other community resources to educate on chronic disease, prevention and promoting health and wellness.

For those interested in ordering milk, contact (847)262-5134 or orders@milkbankwgl.org.

For those interested in donating, visit the De Pere Health Department, 335 S. Broadway, De Pere, or www.milkbankwgl.org.